The Family Issue:

Families are aware when someone they are living with are suffering from the disorders of Anxiety and Panic. What they do not often understand is why, and the anger or irritation or blaming that exists when they are unable to control the attacks for that family member. Developing an understanding of what the family member is going through is the first step in keeping your own sanity intact. The person suffering from panic attacks often worries that one of their children will suffer the same disorder and the guilt factor builds up. Understand it is nothing you have done, or said that starts an attack. Most families start to blame each other. For example, the kids were arguing and Mom or Dad happened to have an attack. It was not any one persons fault.

Do not become accusatory when an attack happens. Social situations are hard for a person with Anxiety, even worse when it becomes a Panic Attack, which often lead to phobias that you cannot understand.

Signs and Symptoms

Here are some of the symptoms a person experiencing an attack may have, usually all or majority exists during an attack. Feelings of numbness in hands, arms and legs, rapid, heartbeat, tightness in chest and throat, complaints of inability to swallow or feeling of lump in throat, hyperventilation, stomach upset, butterflies, weakness, fatigue (lethargy), tremors or “shakes”, dizziness, sweaty, racing thoughts, confusion, inability to concentrate, feeling of detachment, muscle tension, and finally the most important is the fear of dying or impending doom.

Causes

Many factors can cause these attacks. PSTD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) this can be from something that happened from childhood to adulthood many abused women have this disorder, OCD Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Manic Depressive Illness, Generalized Depression, Menopause due to change in hormones and Mitral Value Prolapse to name a few.

Treatment

There are many other resources available to help cope with a family member with this disorder. Check your local Mental Health Center for support groups. Often a Psychologist and Psychiatrist will work together to help the patient live a normal life. This may or may not include family counseling. Medications commonly used to treat this disorder are Xanax, Tranxene, Elavil, Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, Ativan, and Buspar are just a few. Each year there are new medications that become available. The problem with using some of these medications is that they can become habit forming.

Please do not take this as medical advice, only information on what the illness is and how your physician may treat the patient.